In-Stat: Multimedia, Data-Rich Mobile Phones Rapidly Taking Market Share in Asia

In-Stat has released a new report that finds "cutting-edge mobile phones—phones integrated with various multimedia and rich-data functionalities—are rapidly increasing their share of phones shipped in the Asia Pacific market." One example is of the "252.3 million mobile phones shipped in the region in 2005, 53.4% had camera functions." In-Stat attributes the "plunging price of such models in emerging markets" as greatly promoting their adoption.

Victor Liu at In-Stat said, “Digital cameras, including both digital still camera and video camera, will remain the most popular function of cutting-edge phone. By 2009, 67% of mobiles sold in Asia Pacific will have camera functionality.”

Key findings include:

• Phones with music-playing capabilities accounted for 23% of phones sold; that figure is above the global average of 13.6%.
• By 2009, the functionality and quality of music playing on mobile phones will be greatly enhanced, with music phones likely to be in direct competition with stand-alone music players.
• Mobile digital broadcasting TV phones, and cellular phones with alternative wireless broadband connectivity, were introduced to early adopters in South Korea and Japan in 2005.